Category Archives: recipes

A couple weeks ago we made a visit to the international market to stock up on a few things that aren’t available at the regular grocery store. Somehow a packet of guava paste made it into the cart, (okay, I put it there), and it’s been sitting on my kitchen counter ever since. I wasn’t entirely sure what I wanted to make with it but I decided to get creative and see what happened when I combined American pie and Salvadoran semita with Cuban pastelitos de guayaba y queso. Hilariously, I ended up using my Ecuadorian friend, Laylita’s recipe for sweet empanada dough for the crust, so this recipe is authentically Ecua-Cuba-Ameri-doran… or something like that.

If the photos haven’t already tempted you to give it a try, let me tell you, it’s everything I hoped it would be. The look of a traditional American pie with the criss-cross technique I use on Salvadoran semita, a crust that is crisp on top but crumbly and tender inside, and a filling that is sweet, rich, and full of close-your-eyes-when-you-take-a-bite-Cuban-goodness.

Before I give you the recipe down below, I just want to say that I’m not fond of the word “pay” in Spanish. Maybe because it reminds me of “payasos” (which scare me), or because it looks like how I would have spelled “pie” in Kindergarten. Anyway, I’ve spelled it “pay” because the rest of the recipe name is in Spanish. Also, if I spelled it “pie” in English then some of the native Spanish speakers might think about feet, which is just ever so slightly unappetizing. So, call it whichever you want – “Pay de Guayaba y Queso” or “Guava and Cheese Pie” … it will taste the same either way.

1. Follow Laylita’s direction to create the dough first. I followed the directions exactly, using 4 tablespoons of water where it says “2 to 4” and 1/4 cup of sugar where it says “1/4 to 1/2.” Separate the dough into 2 balls, flatten into large discs and refrigerate for 30 minutes as instructed.

2. On a lightly floured surface (lightly floured parchment paper works best for me), roll out one of the balls to fit in and up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate. Leave the other ball of dough refrigerated while you work.

3. Pick up the parchment paper and gently turn it over onto the pie plate. Press the dough against the sides and trim off any excess.

4. Cut the guava paste into slices about as thick as a pencil and layer them on top of the dough, overlapping when it becomes necessary.

5. Spread the cream cheese on top of the guava in an even layer.

6. Roll out the other dough ball the same as the first one and gently put it on top. Trim off the excess.

7. Use a pastry brush (or a clean, dry paper towel balled up if you don’t have a pastry brush), to gently brush the whisked egg onto the crust.

8. Take the dough scraps and form a ball. Roll the ball out and use a pizza cutter to cut strips to decorate the top in a crisscross pattern or however you like.

9. Gently brush egg on the crust again, being careful not to disturb the crisscross design.

10. Sprinkle a small handful of sugar evenly onto the crust.

11. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 375 F until golden brown. (Mine took about 35 minutes.)

“Budín” or “bread pudding” in English, is a dessert that makes use of stale bread, although fresh bread works just as well. Variations of the dish can be found around the world.

When my suegra lived with us she often made “budín de guineo” or “banana bread pudding.” I decided to try my hand at making a traditional Salvadoran budín today, but instead of bananas, I made use of 2 ripe plantains I had on hand in a “budín de plátano.”

As usual, I consulted several authentic recipes before developing my own version and Carlos loves it. I hope you give it a try!

Note: Although I haven’t tried it yet, I imagine 3-4 large bananas can be substituted for the plantains without any problem.

Directions:

1. Cut the ends off each plantain and then cut into the peel lengthwise to remove the peel. Place the peeled plantains in an ungreased Pyrex at 350 F for 25 to 30 minutes until you can squish them with a fork. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.

2. In a food processor set to “mince”, process the plantains. Next add the eggs and process until combined.

3. Combine the following ingredients one-by-one, into the food processor. Each time you add a new ingredient, process until combined for a few seconds: 2 tablespoons melted butter, flour, milk, salt, sugar, vanilla extract. [If using raisins, you can now stir them in with a spoon.]

4. In a greased 7×11 Pyrex, place the cubes of bread in an even layer. Pour the plantain mixture evenly over top of the bread cubes. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon and bake at 350 F for 30 minutes. The budín is finished when it’s firm, sides are lightly browned, and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

5. Allow to cool. You can cut and serve from the pan as is or try the alternate method below.

Optional alternate method: To make the budín especially pretty, use a third cooked plantain or banana cut into circles. Lay the circles on the bottom of the greased Pyrex before adding the bread cubes and batter. When the budín is done baking and has cooled, you can invert it (flip it over) into a larger 9×13 Pyrex. The plantain or banana circles will make for a very pretty presentation.

The other night, right before bedtime, Carlos got a craving for something sweet. After opening and closing the kitchen cabinets multiple times, he finally came to me with desperation in his eyes, “Isn’t there anything you can make me?”

I ended up making him a banana bread mug cake recipe I found on the internet. I personally love mug cakes but Carlos wasn’t impressed. When I served it to him he complained that it was more like a banana tamal than banana bread because of the texture. Inspiration struck and I vowed that I would see if I could make a tamal de elote in the microwave using this popular “mug cake” method.

This morning I finally had a chance to experiment. I nervously put the batter into the coffee mug, set the microwave to 3 minutes on high, crossed my fingers and hit “START.” After the microwave beeped, I pulled the mug out, inverted it onto a little plate and was super excited to see the texture was what I had hoped for. But how would it taste? I took a tentative bite and celebrated. Tamal de elote! From a microwave!

I let my older son try it and he declared it “really good.” When I made a second one just to double check my recipe, he ended up eating that one too. If you’re not familiar with tamles de elote (corn tamales), this “mug cake” tastes exactly like Chi-Chi’s sweet corn cake to me. Give it a try and tell me what you think!

Quite a few years ago I went to Miami and had my first Cuban Sandwich which I fell in love with. Upon arriving home eventually a craving hit but Cuban Sandwiches are hard to come by this far north. I researched recipes and while doing so, I stumbled upon a different kind of Cuban sandwich called the “Elena Ruz” and an interesting story about how it came to be.

According to Wikipedia, Elena Ruz was a young society debutante in 1930’s Cuba who would stop at a popular Havana restaurant called El Carmelo. Each time Elena visited the restaurant she requested they make her something that they didn’t have on the menu – a sandwich to her specifications prepared on medianoche bread with cream cheese, strawberry jam, and thin slices of turkey breast. Eventually El Carmelo put the sandwich on the menu, calling it, por supuesto, the Elena Ruz.

For some reason the odd combination seemed appealing to me, so I tried the sandwich, using King’s Hawaiian Rolls as a substitute for medianoche bread, (which I’ve never seen sold around here.) This Cuban sandwich also became a favorite of mine. If you want to give it a try, here’s how I make it.

Elena Ruz Sandwich

1. Slice Hawaiian rolls open. Spread cream cheese on the bottom half and strawberry jelly on the top half.
2. Put a few slices of turkey on top of the cream cheese and close the sandwich.
3. Grease a non-stick skillet or griddle with a little butter over medium heat. Toast the sandwich on one side, applying gentle pressure with a spatula. Flip and do the same to the other side.
4. Serve warm!

This post is sponsored by Nestlé Nido. Product for review and recipe development have been received as well as compensation for my time. As always, all opinions are my own.

Carlos doesn’t cook much at all, but the thing he feels most comfortable making is his Batido de Leche con Guineo. Over the years he has made banana smoothies for himself and our boys many times, so much so that when the boys want one, they ask him instead of me. While he makes them year round, he tends to make the batidos during the summer as a refreshing treat. Our family depends on simple everyday things like that because most years we can’t afford to travel or vacation like we want to. Summer memories for my sons are things like lying in the hammock and watching puffy, white clouds sail by; running barefoot through cool grass in our yard to catch lightening bugs, and sipping batidos de guineo that their father made for them.

So, when given the opportunity to develop a recipe with the Nestlé Nido Kinder 1+ (a vitamin-fortified powdered milk), I knew immediately I’d be using Carlos’s smoothie recipe and changing it up a little. What I love about Nestlé Nido is that it adds over a dozen vitamins and minerals, but it also adds a really good flavor.

(Even our dog Chico wants a sip.)

(On a hilarious side note, Carlos eats the powder straight. He says one of his cousins in El Salvador used to have a powder like this in their kitchen growing up and he used to steal spoonfuls of it as a kid and eat it. I tasted it straight to see if he was being crazy and strangely enough, it really is good like that.)

Anyhow, when the boys saw me experimenting with the Nestlé Nido in the kitchen they were reluctant to try what I was making because it’s “baby formula for babies” according to them, but they ended up loving it and begging me to make more. Smoothies made with Nestlé Nido are perfect for back-to-school, either for breakfast when your child claims they “aren’t that hungry” or for an after school snack before they get down to doing homework.

Try the recipe below and then enter the giveaway to win your own Nestlé Nido products plus a $50 gift card!

Batido de Leche con Guineo (Banana Smoothie)

Directions: Place all ingredients in the blender. Blend for 30 seconds to one minute. Pour into glasses and serve. Serves about 2. (Optional: You can add sugar, which is what Carlos does, but the boys and I prefer it without added sugar.)

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

How to enter: Just leave a comment below telling me the flavor of your favorite smoothie/batido. (Please read official rules below before entering.)

Official Rules: No purchase necessary. You must be 18 years of age or older to enter. You must be able to provide a U.S. address for prize shipment. Your name and address will only be shared with the PR agency responsible for prize fulfillment for that purpose. Please no P.O. Boxes. One entry per household. Make sure that you enter a valid email address in the email address field so you can be contacted if you win. Winner will be selected at random. Winner has 24 hours to respond. If winner does not respond within 24 hours, a new winner will be selected at random. Giveaway entries are being accepted between August 26th, 2014 through August 31st, 2014. Entries received after August 31st, 2014 at 11:59 pm EST, will not be considered. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. If you win, by accepting the prize, you are agreeing that Latinaish.com assumes no liability for damages of any kind. By entering your name below you are agreeing to these Official Rules. Void where prohibited by law.

Carlos has been sick for a week, and on Friday he was so sick that he even took off work. I’ve been doing every home remedy I know of to make him better – Vicks Vaporub on the feet before bed, honey lemon tea, vaporizers, vitamin C, and just plain old bed rest, but nothing seemed to help very much. (I did all these remedios caseros on myself too for prevention and so far, so good.)

On Saturday Carlos asked me to make him Sopa de Pollo, but he didn’t want the Bolivian Chicken Soup recipe I always use. He asked if I’d try to make Salvadoran Chicken Soup “with lots of vegetables” this time. Obviously he was needing a little extra apapachamiento! Of course I always love making a new Salvadoran dish and seeing the way his eyes light up when it’s a success, so I did some research, looked at a handful of recipes, and then headed to the grocery store to get what I needed.

Before the soup was even ready, Carlos was getting excited. He kept calling out to me from the living room where he was on the sofa covered in a blanket, “It smells so good. It smells like I remember…” Then when it was ready, I put the bowl before him at the table and he smiled, “It looks like how I remember!” … Then he tasted it, and I’m not exaggerating, he stood up, kissed me (on the neck so I wouldn’t get his germs) and told me he loved me. Jajaja.

Here’s my recipe in case you know a sick salvadoreño or salvadoreña who could use a little “TLC”, (Cuidado amoroso y tierno.)

Note: I used all boneless, skinless chicken thighs because Carlos prefers dark meat and it gives the stock a better flavor, but you can use a whole chicken cut in pieces (remove skin – bones optional as some people like to “chupar el hueso”), or substitute some chicken breasts. As for the vegetables, feel free to experiment. For example, some people use yucca instead of potatoes, and some add chayote/güisquil, broccoli, cauliflower, and/or green pepper.

2. In a large stock pot over medium high heat, add the chicken plus enough water to cover by about 2 inches.

4. Simmer for 20 minutes or until chicken is completely cooked. Use a slotted spoon to remove and then discard the cilantro, basil, celery, tomatoes and green onions. Use a small sieve to skim off any foam.

6. Remove cover. Add cabbage and zucchini. Simmer for a minute or two and then remove from heat. Allow to cool slightly and then taste. Add additional salt as desired. (I prefer to let each person add more salt to their own individual portion.)

7. Ladle into bowls and top with cilantro if desired. (I like to eat all the meat and vegetables out of it and then eat the broth with crushed Ritz crackers.)

I’m hesitant to even publish this as a “recipe” because it’s just basically melted cheese inside a tortilla, but I’m doing this as a service to those who may be totally unfamiliar with the process and have yet to experience the happiness that is a simple homemade Mexican quesadilla. (Salvadoran quesadillas are equally wonderful, but an entirely different food and a bit more complicated to make. My recipe for those can be found here.)

Quesadillas

What you need:

Tortillas (I prefer white corn)
Cheese (Oaxaca cheese is authentic, but a pre-shredded “Mexican” blend is what I use)
A comal/griddle or large non-stick frying pan
Cholula hot sauce (optional)

Note: This recipe is for the most basic of quesadillas and I love them like this, but feel free to add in whatever you have on hand – some leftover shredded chicken, beans, slices of pickled jalapeño, etc. The possible combinations are only limited by your imagination.

Directions:

1. Heat up the comal, griddle or non-stick frying pan. Do not add oil or butter – It should be nice and dry.

2. Place two tortillas on the comal. Allow to slightly “toast” on one side. Flip both tortillas over.

3. Place a handful of cheese on one of the tortillas. Put the tortilla without any cheese on top. Allow the cheese to melt and remove from heat. Cut in half with a pizza cutter. Repeat as necessary. Optional: Serve with Cholula hot sauce.

Note: Another method (and the more authentic way) is to put cheese on each tortilla and fold in half. I find that doing it this way makes some of the shredded cheese fall out onto my comal and burn, so that’s why I use the other method.